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Chat with MLBTR's Steve Adams: 3/19/24
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Still waiting in San Diego
1:29
I too am puzzled by Preller's fascination with Profar, but he does bring something to the team.  Look at the record with and without him, he must be good in the clubhouse because they win with him on the roster.  Ideally he's on the roster but not the field as much.
Steve Adams
1:29
I haven't looked at their record with/without him, but that seems entirely anecdotal to me, regardless.
Jimbo
1:30
What are your thoughts on Reynaldo Lopez as the Braves' 5th starter. Can he thrive in that role?
Steve Adams
1:31
It's an odd experiment to me, given the success he'd had in short relief relative to the struggles he had as a starter. I tend to think he'll end up back in the 'pen, but curious to see how it goes. If I'm proven wrong, hey, kudos to the Braves and it'll be a real nice value.
Phillies Phan
1:31
Should the Phillies be in on Montgomery if he will take a Snell type contract? I have reservations about trusting Walker or Sanchez.
Steve Adams
1:33
They're in a similar setting to the Yankees, Dodgers, Mets. They're not quite as deep into the luxury tax territory so it's not a straight 110% tax, but signing Montgomery would cost them nearly double. Besides, Sanchez can't be optioned to AAA since he's out of minor league options. You could start him in a swing role and use him as a sixth starter, but I think the Phillies are content with the state of the staff, broadly speaking.
Rally Monkey
1:34
Where do the Angels go from here after the Snell signing? Seems as if they are gearing up to sell at the deadline/next offseason but Moreno has been steadfast about a desire to compete (this offseason results notwithstanding).
Steve Adams
1:35
I don't really understand anything the Angels are doing. Their GM came out early and pledged to be aggressive and not to rebuild. And they've had a middling offseason where they've overinvested in the bullpen and otherwise spun their wheels. The team doesn't look better than it did in 2023, but they're also not rebuilding. I just don't see a viable path to contending in 2024, and it increasingly feels like they're lacking direction entirely.
Jack
1:36
Have the Nola and Wheeler extensions likely taken the Phillies out of the Juan Soto sweepstakes?
Steve Adams
1:38
They already have $213MM on next year's books and $229MM in luxury obligations, and that's before arb raises to Ranger Suarez, Gregory Soto, Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh, Bryson Stott and others. (Also before deciding on club options for Merrifield and Dominguez)

It'd be a surprise to see them add yet another long-term contract like Soto to the books
Sir Nerdlington
1:39
Can vets in on NRIs get traded prior to their opening day / May 1 opt outs?
Steve Adams
1:39
They can, though it's more common for them to just be let out of their contracts to go back to free agency
Rasta
1:39
With Snell, are Giants a top 5 starting rotation in baseball?
Steve Adams
1:41
With Snell, the Giants have 2-3 good starters in their Opening Day rotation.

If you're asking once Cobb and Ray are back... sure it's possible that Webb/Snell/Ray/Cobb/Harrison is a top-five rotation. But I also find it unlikely that said quintet will all be healthy for much of the season, given sheer pitcher attrition and the health histories of Ray and Cobb in particular.
Signing Jordan Hicks to be a starter is one of the weirdest moves of the entire offseason and just feels like the Giants got weird/cute for the sake of being weird/cute.

Love the Snell deal for them though, and Webb is excellent.
Bored Bora Boras
1:42
So if Snell's contract was the same but the 2nd year was a TO instead of a PO then they don't lose the pick? Sorry, may be a little confused. re:"bbgods laugh"
Steve Adams
1:42
If you sign a player who rejected a qualifying offer to a Major League contract, you lose the pick(s) and international money. Period.
1:43
Unless you do it after the following year's draft (midsummer)
Doug
1:43
Brandon Belt retiring? The Padres are in desperate need for a LH bat unless they want to go with a guy with less than 100 ABs above A-Ball at DH.
Steve Adams
1:44
I'm surprised he's still out there. Andrew Baggarly with The Athletic reported maybe a month or so ago that Belt was definitely playing and felt he might be getting close to signing with a team. Not sure what changed there, but Belt crushed RHP last year and has plenty of value in a platoon 1B/DH role
Chris
1:44
Shouldnt the Os be going all in on one of the high AAV short termers like Snell or Monty? They are nowhere near the tax and have Burnes just for the year. That pitching is nowhere near playoff series caliber
Steve Adams
1:45
100% yes to all this
1:46
Even with Bradish, the rotation would've been more good than great. Subtract him for the short-term -- possibly for the entire season, as we're talking about a UCL injury -- and it just feels insufficient. Suppose they can always add in season, but like you said, they've got one year of Burnes promised to them. Once you make that aggressive one-year upgrade, I think it's a disservice to the team and fans to not push harder.
Yankees fan
1:46
Why can the Yankees find a way to be creative with contract offers? They easily could have done something like the giants did with Snell or the dodgers with Ohtani.
Steve Adams
1:47
Signing Snell to that exact contract would've cost the Yankees an additional $34.1MM in luxury taxes
1:48
They'd effectively be risking nearly $100MM (the $62MM + $34.1MM) that Snell would pitch well enough for them in '24 to opt out again next offseason. Snell obviously makes them better, and I tend to shrug and say "hey it's not my money, go for it," but I can also pretty easily understand why even Hal Steinbrenner said no to that outlay.
erstadfan17
1:50
When do the angels start the fire sale? Would players like neto and schanuel be offered?
Steve Adams
1:50
They've made pretty clear they don't plan to sell off, and besides, they control both those guys for six more years, so they wouldn't be traded regardless.
Math4Ball
1:50
Yanks a fit for Josh Harrison?
Steve Adams
1:50
Makes sense with DJLM banged up, sure
Keith
1:51
What kind of contract is Martinez looking at? Am I crazy to think Preller will come in with a $24m/3 with opt outs each season similar to his previous Profar deal?
Steve Adams
1:52
It'd be an interesting way to get him the guarantee he's seeking (or thereabouts) without going into the luxury tax. I can see it, I suppose. But guaranteeing three years to a 36-year-old DH is pretty unappealing for the team. Suppose they could frontload the contract ($10-12MM in '24) to try to make the opt-outs more appealing.
Dilly Dog
1:52
This maaaaaybe more fantasy related but who would you prefer to have this year? Orion Kerkering or Chad Green?
Steve Adams
1:52
Kerkering
Joshua
1:53
Any chance delauter makes Clevelands OD roster?
Brian
1:53
Are the Guardians really going to keep Florial on their roster instead of DeLauter? DeLauter has clearly won a job
Steve Adams
1:53
DeLauter has played six games in Double-A and none in Triple-A. I think it's plenty defensible if they send him down, good as he's looked this spring. You're talking 25 PAs, some of it not even against MLB-caliber pitching.
Clark Addison
1:54
I have both Tylor Megill & Adrian Houser on my NL-only roster and both are $1.  I'm only going to be able to keep one of them.  Which one will be most likely to stick in the Mets rotation when Senga returns?
Steve Adams
1:54
Houser is in that rotation as long as he's healthy. Megill has minor league options and is the only one of the Mets' starters who can be sent down. Houser.
Sad Reds Fan
1:55
Should the reds bring in CF help with Friedl on the shelf? Who’s an actual helpful option?
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